Natural Bridge & Springbrook Waterfalls Tour
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Take in all that the World Heritage Rainforests of Springbrook and Natural Bridge has to offer in half a day. This tour has so much to offer only a short drive from the Gold Coast beaches allowing you to truly explore the green behind the gold on this nature based hinterland experience.
Your Natural Bridge & Springbrook Waterfalls Tour:
A short drive from the Gold Coast through Numinbah valley with its high cliffs and green country pastures leads us to the World Heritage listed Springbrook National Park. Explore ancient Gondwana rainforest with Antarctic beech trees dating back over 3000 years.
Visit the stunning Natural Arch waterfall on a fully guided walk led by your expert local guide. Learn about the unique flora and fauna of the rainforest as you make your way through the forest to the waterfall. From inside the cave witness the unique and magical sight of water cascading through the roof of the basalt cave which has been formed over millions of years.
Continuing the tour, Best of All Lookout offers a sweeping view across the valley from the Gold Coast to Byron Bay and Mount Warning. The walk to this magnificent lookout takes you through one of the few remaining pockets of ancient Antarctic beech forest, a link to the ancient forests of Gondwana.
Enjoy savoury and sweet snacks with cold drinks before heading to the nearby viewing platform to see the majestic Purling Brook Falls.
During the journey, informative tour commentary on the area and wildlife is provided along with great scenery of the Numinbah Valley. Finish the day with a visit to either Canyon Lookout or Goomoolahra Falls Lookout (weather dependent).
Tour Highlights:
View up to 5 Waterfalls including Purling Brook Falls and Natural Bridge.
Light refreshments included.
Travel through Numinbah Valley with its high cliffs and green country pastures.
Fully guided rainforest walk to Natural Bridge.
Best Of All Lookout, 2000 year old Beech Trees, breathtaking views over Mt Warning and Green Cauldron of Northern NSW (weather dependent).
Informative commentary throughout the tour.
National Park fees included.
Small group tours offer a personalised experience.
Infant age is 0-1 years. No food or beverage is included.
Any person under 16 years must be accompanied by an adult 18+.
Pick-up from selected locations in Broadbeach, Surfers Paradise, Main Beach, Southport and Nerang Railway Station. Please contact us on +61 7 5655 0716 at least 24hrs prior to your tour to confirm your booking and pick-up details.
Tour duration is approximate and is based on tour time starting from and returning to Aquaduck booking office, Surfers Paradise.
Southern Cross Tours may alter or cancel any section of any of the itinerary which may result from road closures, weather, suppliers or any other condition of an operational nature. Alternate vehicles may be used in the event that a Southern Cross vehicle is unavailable.
What to bring:
Comfortable walking shoes, a jacket, hat, water bottle.
Our rainforest walks require a low to moderate degree of fitness and follow clearly marked paths and boardwalks. Enclosed shoes are recommended.
Additional note:
All our vehicles carry umbrellas, insect repellent and first aid kits. Your guides have all relevant permits, training and authorisation to ensure a safe, comfortable journey. This is an all age tour. Should you require a booster seat for younger family members, we can provide them at no extra charge – just let us know in advance. Please note there is no luggage/pram/stroller storage on the bus.
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Despite the heavy rain on the day, the views were stunning! I actually prefer this kind of weather since it makes walking in the rainforest easier and cooler.
We saw an amazing selection of creatures, including a water dragon, huge panda(?) snail, giant (and I mean giant!) cricket, a selection of spiders, a cane toad, cute frog and a couple of leaf-tailed gheckos! The slaters curled themselves into a ball when picked up and were so metallic! We did see the glow worms too of course, but difficult to get good photos on my phone.
Highly recommend! 👌
Thanks Andy, for all the commentary.
Happy birthday.
The tour was awesome - we started at natural bridge and then did the Twin Falls track at Springbrook because that was top on my list and if you like to hike that is a great choice. We got to see multiple waterfalls and even stand under them. It was foggy and drizzling but quite nice in the rainforest. We had some extra time, so we got to stop at Purling Brook falls as well, and the views were nice even with the cloudy weather. After a stop for dinner, we went to see glowworms at Curtis falls and they were so bright! Amber told us about a lot of creepy crawly bugs along the way.
My one tip would be to wear long pants especially if it’s wet because my family wore shorts and got leeches on their legs😬
We loved Amber’s Australian music playlist too! Thank you Southern Cross!
At the tamborine mountain rainforest we saw the waterfall, lizards 🦎 , turkeys, and some birds.
Thanks again for the great experience!
Our guide, Bill, was superb. He mixed a wealth of local historical knowledge, with his botanic specialism delivered in a relaxed, often very humorous (lost on some in our group...there loss) manner. He really brought the whole tour to life in an easy to understand way, whilst tackling quite complex historical, geological, botanical and environmental subjects.
His passion for the wildlife, floral and forna really showed.
He made the trip !! Thanks Bill.
I loved how he explained a lot of the history as we were taking the hour drive into the mountains. He was very patient on the trails, leading the way to watch for danger. He showed us spiders as big as my hand, caterpillars that are very poisonous, centipedes that are very poisonous, frogs (not sure if their poisonous), geckos, giant crickets, bats, some type of rodent, leeches and finally the glow worms! Luckily we did not see any snakes!
Our first stop at the Mountain Manor Restaurant to have some refreshments before we start our hike. The hot chocolate and cheesecake was yummy! From 1882 - 1925 this building was a timber mill. It then converted into a cafe restaurant.
I learned so much on this glow-worm experience and that is all thanks to our excellent tour guide!
The stops are brief 10-20 minute viewings but beautiful. Includes a snack. If you want to actually hike around, might want to rent a car.
Tanya was the sweetest and greatest tour guide I have ever seen. She has an abundance of knowledge about Australian history and every phenomenon that's happening in the forest. I still wonder how she was able to point the animals in such dark. She made the tour more memorable.
It rained halfway through our tour. Although they provided an umbrella I didn't take one. Strom in the middle of the forest with glow warms and water fall around you. It's a once in a lifetime experience. If you love nature, you should definitely try this tour.
We stopped in Coombabah Lakelands Conservation Park both at the beginning and end of our day, and were able to see dozens of kangaroos from afar and up close. Our multiple stops in Tambourine National Park allowed for an appreciation of the views all the way down to the coast, and a short hike down to Curtis Falls was full of interesting biology.
The Gallery Walk was a reasonable experience, with multiple different craft and coffee shops.
Overall, a great way to spend the day learning and seeing. Many thanks to Amber for making the experience a fantastic one.
We start the day with a 45 min drive to the Manor for a drink and dessert, followed by a 1.5 hour walk in the rainforest with the glow worms and other lovely animals. The pace of the tour was good, and the weather was pleasant. It would be suitable for all ages though the uneven terrain might be challenging for elderly or young children.
The walk is quiet and peaceful. We loved it. We got lucky and managed to see some eels as well! Many animals blend in so well at night, so Tania was amazing at pointing them out to us. We did see quite a few spiders and snails, so if you're someone who's deathly afraid of spiders this might be hard for you.
Honestly didn't think that it would look as good as it did in the promotion photos but it did! The glow worms were out at full force. We rounded off the day with some stargazing, and of course it was beautiful as well. The tour was about 3.5 hours long in total, with a good spread of activities.
Ultimately I think good weather is the key for this, because it's so dry and cloudy, it was amazing and make the whole experience better. But regardless I would say the tour is well planned and one of the best ones I've been on.
Jamie shared so many interesting facts and stories that really brought the place to life. You could tell he is passionate about what he does. The tour was well-organized, fun, and never rushed. He also went out of his way to make sure everyone was comfortable and enjoying themselves.
If you're looking for a guide who is not only informative but also genuinely caring and enthusiastic, look no further. I would absolutely recommend Southern Cross tours (JAMIE ) to anyone visiting Gold Coast.
Thank you for an unforgettable experience! 🫶🏻💕
Both of them are very responsible and informative. They were eager to introduce the rainforest to us. See their passions on the birds and plants. We enjoyed the tours very much.
As a travel agent who regularly books Southern Cross Tours for my clients, I finally had the chance to experience the Tamborine Mountain tour myself — and I couldn’t be more impressed!
Our guide, Bill, was absolutely incredible. He’s not only knowledgeable but truly passionate about the region. From local history to rainforest ecology, he brought every stop to life with stories and insights that made the experience unforgettable.
The tour was well-paced with delicious tastings, scenic views, and charming local spots. As someone who recommends these tours professionally, it feels amazing to know that our clients are in such good hands.
I only wish I had more time — I’d do every tour they offer!
Highly recommend Southern Cross Tours, and if you get Bill as your guide, you’re in for a treat!
The bus was um, well we saw cockroaches inside. I suspect it was because we were allowed to eat on the bus. It's possible they came from outside, but it made me feel gross. Maybe we can spend 10-15 minutes eating outside the bus? It would mean finishing the tour 10-15 minutes later, but at least we wouldn't have to sit next to cockroaches.
I guess our guide was in a hurry to make sure we were on time and beat the rush, but I felt he drove unnecessarily fast, it's terrible for folks with motion sickness. The drive felt like I was on some sort of theme park ride, but it got us where we needed to go.
I think it should be universal practice for tour guides to give a time for when we need to get back. At our first stop, he said we could stretch our legs, but not walk too far, maybe a bit, but not too much. We didn't know what that meant. It would have been way less confusing to say "We'll meet back here in 10 minutes."
We saw the things we wanted to see and did everything we wanted to do, so it was all right. The walk is very easy, great if you just want a first impression of the sights.
If this tour were a third less expensive, I would have felt more positively about it. Our snack was a muffin and drink, the sights can be reached privately, and even factoring in profits for the company, I just don't see how it reached $100 per person.
Car was comfortable and the size of the group was small enough that it felt coordinated throughout.
The your was great and the tour guide was super friendly ,her name is Amanda.Highly recommend to go on tour with her and she shared with us useful informations and she kept offering to take pictures for us.
Definitely will use the tours again and highly recommend to others to not hesitate to explore the amazing nature of Australia 🦘🏞️




































































